Ray’s MTB rocks!

I feel like I’m a little late to the party but I finally made it out to Cleveland, Ohio last weekend to ride the world-famous Ray’s MTB bike park.

I have to tell you it lived up to the hype.

The park truly has something for everyone: jumps, skatepark-style stuff, cross-country…you name it.

Scott Steinbrick, a Ray’s local, was cool enough to meet up with me on Saturday for a session at the park. After a quick tour of what the park all had to offer, it was time for some riding.

Hitting the Red Bull turn...one of the first things you see when you enter Ray's

I think I ended up riding for close to 4 hours and there’s still plenty of stuff I wish I could have spent more time on. There is so much to see and ride. On top of that, the staff was awesome…very helpful and while seemingly always busy, never reluctant to answer a question or provide assistance.

Exiting the Red Bull turn at warp speed

I want to give a shout out to Scott for showing me around and locals Joe, Brad and Jeff* for being so cool to chat and ride with (and being so spot on with suggestions for places to check out on Saturday night!)

A wall in one of the lounge areas is covered with magazine spreads featuring Ray's

Ray’s MTB is a bike park you definitely want to check out. (I’m already trying to figure out a time when I can go back!) And while I didn’t have the foresight to pack a video camera, the good folks at Vital MTB recently posted a video of the Ray’s season opener that provides a real good feel for what’s like to ride at Ray’s. Check it out.

One of the best things about Ray’s is the concept of having “trails lines” that are separated from other lines. It means that you can have 30 riders sessioning a line, but you don’t have to wait around anymore because you can drop in one after the other in long trains….

Whereas at a typical skatepark/bikepark with intersecting lines, everyone has to wait on deck for one rider to finish a run.

Conclusion: EVERY bike park, including smaller ones should have at least one loop of a “trails line” that is separated from the bowls / street course etc.